The U.S. Department of Government Efficiency is not the first attempt to streamline the federal government, Fareed Zakaria says in his opinion article in the The Washington Post.

During Bill Clinton’s presidency, Vice President Al Gore led a similar effort to “reinvent government,” eliminating over 400,000 federal jobs and thousands of pages of regulations. The initiative saved around $140 billion, with no lawsuits filed against it.

In contrast, DOGE’s approach has been more aggressive, dismantling agencies and firing workers, many of whom were quickly rehired due to their roles in sensitive areas like nuclear security. DOGE has faced numerous court challenges, with one judge questioning its constitutionality.

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While DOGE aims to improve government efficiency, it also appeals to the MAGA movement’s desire to disrupt the establishment. Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, expressed a goal of making federal workers feel like “villains” and creating “trauma” for them. This aligns with the broader MAGA rhetoric, which views the establishment as out of touch and elitist.

However, while the U.S. government has outperformed other wealthy nations in terms of economic growth and income equality, the MAGA movement, influenced by figures like Elon Musk, seeks to embrace a “disrupt and destroy” mentality.

This approach contrasts with the success stories of companies like Microsoft and Nvidia, which have grown steadily. Despite this, the same figures advocating for disruption owe their success to the systems they now seek to dismantle, highlighting a paradox in their stance.

Read more at The Washington Post.